Blank
by kassyfreak
Summary: Danny finds Ember in an alley after a night of ghost hunting. She suddenly collapses, and he takes her to his house. Soon, he finds that she's not all bad. Doesn't follow closely with the cartoon. Rated T for language. Please R&R. Summary sucks. ;p
1. Chapter 1

_**I haven't seen any of the Danny Phantom episodes recently, and so I could be totally off on some details, so please excuse the mistakes if there is one in the background story to some of the other characters.**_

_**I don't own Danny Phantom. The show would suck if I did.**_

_**Enjoy.**_

Blank, A Danny Phantom story

…

Shaking.

…

Cowering.

…

Scared.

…

Scared of being forgotten.

…

Scared of being defeated.

…

He was going to trap her in that stupid Fenton Thermos.

And send her back to that dumb ass ghost zone.

And then she was as good as dead to the world.

She was going to be a famous rock star when she was human, alive. She'd planned on it from the very start. She knew what the name of the band was going to be. She knew the lyrics and guitar chords and drum beats of ten of the songs that were going to be in her first album. She wanted to be infamous and immortal… and remembered.

She had constantly sketched her fantasy look, with blue crazy hair in an uncontrollably teased 'do (although her hair was red from when she was 13 and wanted red hair, but her taste changed), wicked huge boots, silver belt, black leather pants, and small one shoulder, belly showin' shirt. She perfected her makeup, down to the last fake eyelash.

She had dreams when she was human.

When she was alive, and when she had hope. Now, her fate was sitting in that cramped thermos with all the other stinky, asshole ghosts Danny had captured for the evening. She always ended up being the last one because she was a challenge.

She died when she was 17. She had been in Hollywood, at a record company, trying to impress them with her music, and her friends, Kevin, the drummer, Stacey, the bassist, and Jimmy, the keyboardist, were there with her. They were going to do the second song she'd ever written with the band.

_"__It was, it was September,  
Wind blows, the dead leaves fall,  
To you, I did surrender,  
Two weeks, you didn't call..._

_Your life goes on without me,  
My life, a losing game,  
But you should, you should not doubt me,  
You will remember my name..._

_Oh, Ember, you will remember!  
Ember, one thing remains!  
Oh, Ember, so warm and tender!  
You will remember my name!"_

_The try-out was successful, and the manager asked them to come back in a week, and finish the song then. So, they stayed in a hotel in Hollywood, because they planned a week of sightseeing ahead of them. But, while they were in an alley having a smoke in a different part of Los Angeles, a creepy man rounded the corner and stared and the group. Ember glared at him, and snapped, "What the hell do you want?" Kevin blew smoke towards the man._

_He walked closer. One step. Stacey whispered, "Oh, no. I have a… a really bad feeling about this."_

_The man stepped closer. You could see the smile on his face. Stacey screamed, "RUN!" Jimmy didn't smoke, and his hands found Stacey and yanked her down the alley further into the shadows. Kevin, being the selfish bastard that he was, didn't think about Ember, and instead bolted past the strange man, running into him as he turned the corner._

_The man wasn't phased, and his eyes were locked on Ember's. She heard a click as he pulled something out from behind his back. The silhouette was in the shape of…_

_She squinted. And before she could scream, there was a loud BANG and she gasped for air._

_"Wh… Why would you do this?"_

_The man stepped into the building's side light. He had blue skin and black hair. He was wearing a white cape._

_"Ember," he said, his voice sounding muffled. Her vision switched from black behind her eyes, from nothing, to the alleyway and the mysterious blue man, to nothing. It switched with the time of her pulse, slowing gradually._

_"I'm going-" her scream interrupted his sentence. The pain in her gut where he shot her was unimaginable, and spreading like a disease throughout her whole body. Her hands grew clammy._

_"Please," she whimpered. "Please don't make me suffer. Put me out of my pain." She blinked back tears and choked back cries of agony. The pain flared up suddenly. She bit her lip, tears falling down her face. She didn't want to die._

_"Enjoy your heartbeat," the man said, smiling and showing fangs. "My name is Vlad, and I'm taking you to the ghost realm."_

_The sweat on her brow dripped down to her mouth and she licked her lips, tasting the salty warmth. It wasn't altogether an unpleasant taste. It was the last real thing she tasted, because immediately after, she keeled over, and her body tensed incredibly, and grew limp, her face rubbing the dirt. The nothingness took her over, and she grew cold. The vision pulsed slower. One more look at the ground of the artificial city of Los Angeles, one more feeling of physical human pain of fear and lack of love, and she couldn't feel anything._

Dead.

She was dead.

And she was sitting in another godforsaken alley next to a trashcan, waiting for Danny's thermos to suck her into her little cage.

She heard Tucker's voice first, yelling from around the corner.

"I think she went this way!"

Sam was next. "Come _on_, Danny! Hurry up."

"I have a _gash_ in my _arm_, Sam," Danny's voice reached her ears and she groaned. This should be fun.

"Alright, would you like me to put a bandage on your arm, _dear_?" Sam said sarcastically. "You're tough, and you've had a lot worse."

Danny snapped back, "You know, you're acting a little rude right now, Sam. It's bleeding like crazy. Gimme a break. We've been fighting ghosts since six o'clock."

Tucker said, in defense of Danny, "Yeah, he's right y'know. It's already almost midnight."

"But, there's no rest for assholes like Ember."

Oh, that hurt.

What a _bitch!_ Who did she think she was?

But maybe she was right.

Maybe Ember was an asshole. She didn't exactly appreciate the effort her band members put in for her dreams of fame and success. In fact, she had screamed at them constantly as a human.

_  
"Hey, guys, wanna go get some ice cream?" Kevin asked after they finished a song._

"_Sure," Stacey and Jimmy said. They looked at Ember, who was focused on something she was writing on the table. Kevin put his hands on her waist and asked her about their decision._

_She sighed, and said, "I have to fix your guitar chords, Stacey. And, Jimmy, this note-" she tapped on the paper- "doesn't cooperate well with the other two."_

"_C'mon, Ember," Stacey said. "We've been practicing since, like, 8 this morning."_

"_Well, at least I __**want**__ to improve the music. You guys never put any effort into the songs, and you never give me any suggestions on what to possibly change!" Ember snapped._

"_Excuse me?" Kevin, pulling his hands back, asked. "We've put up with your attitude a lot recently, and we do give you suggestions, but every time we __**do**__, you just snap at us and say that __**you're**__ the one writing the song, and that you don't need shit excuses from amateurs."_

"_And-" Jimmy touched Stacey's shoulder lightly- "you yell at us, constantly. For no reason. We do the notes right, we practice till you're sick of us, and you still complain."_

_Stacey joined in with, "And we are __**not**__ amateurs. We demand and we deserve respect."_

"_We're leaving till you get your head on straight, bitch," Kevin said, and they all stormed out._

Ember felt wet streaks on her face. She was an asshole. That had almost been the end of the band. But, thankfully, they put up with her a little longer.

While she had been recalling their worst fight, Sam and Danny had their worst one yet, and Tucker left with Sam. Danny muttered something, but Ember couldn't make it out. She wiped her cheek with the heel of her hand, and sniffed.

Danny flew around the corner. She scooted further into the shadow of the trash can and garbage. He landed and changed back into his human self when he didn't see anyone. He walked further into the alley. Ember felt for her guitar behind the trash can. She grasped the neck and carefully pulled it out. She aimed it at Danny, and was about to stand up when her boot scuffed an aluminum can across the ground. Danny turned around and spotted Ember. But he just stood there. She started turning the knobs to get the proper setting to blast Danny.

"You okay?" he asked. She snapped her head up and stared at him. "You look like crap."

She felt her cheek and brought her hand down to look at it. There was black on her fingertips. She looked into the trash can lid and realized she was still crying. She sniffed.

"Why should you care?" she snapped.

Danny paused. There was something utterly pathetic about her, and he couldn't bring himself to hurt her. "I… don't know."

Ember stared at him, with an eyebrow raised. "Right." She started walking away, since he wasn't making any effort to hurt her, and she didn't feel like fighting. In fact, all her energy had been drained for some reason.

"Wait!" Danny said. She stopped.

"What?"

"Wait. Please." She turned around slowly, hesitantly.

Danny had no idea why he had shouted. "Um…" Before he could answer the question he knew they were both thinking, Ember gasped. "What's wrong?" She gasped again, but it seemed like she was gasping for air. Her guitar fell from her hand and hit the ground. She fell to her knees.

"Ember!" Danny rushed to her side. She clutched her throat. It was closing up on her. She fell over onto her side, still gasping. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head, and she grew still. Even though she didn't need air, it a human reflex. She hadn't been dead for long, and still breathed subconsciously. Danny couldn't see anything that would've set her body off like that. He sat there for two minutes, shocked.

_What the hell happened? _he thought. He then jumped into action. He turned back into his ghost self, and draped her over his arms, flying home.

_**I have no idea what's going to happen next. I'm just making this up as I go along**_

_**Please read and review. Makes my week! ;]**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**New chapter! I must say the reviews I got in less than 24 hours were realllllyyy great! I'm so glad you're enjoying the story.**_

_**youngarteest8 – I must say, your review was SO special! I was grinning from ear to ear. I'm so glad you're enjoying the story, and it's meant to leave you asking questions. :D Thank you thank you thank you for the review!! :'D**_

_**Kixen, thanks for letting me know about the pairing mistake. Haven't seen the show in ages. ;P And I'm glad you know what I'm talking about. I'm not crazy!! :D**_

_**And everyone that added my story to your favorites list or story alert list, thank you! I really appreciate it!**_

_**Now down to business!**_

_**DISCLAIMER, MY FRIENDS: I DON'T OWN DANNY PHANTOM OR ANY OF THE SHOW'S CHARACTERS (EXCEPT FOR THOSE I MIGHT MAKE UP MYSELF ;p)**_

Blank, Chapter 2

"Hnn?" Ember stirred, rolled over, and opened her eyes very slowly. It was dark, wherever she was. She remembered what happened at midnight that one night. (She didn't know if it was the next day or a week after.) The air smelled unfamiliar.

_Oh, crap,_ she thought when she realized that Danny had put her in the thermos. He had done something to screw up her nervous system, and then trapped her! She jolted up, and something cold fell into her lap. She squealed and picked it up.

_A cold compress?_

She felt around in the dark for some way to turn on a light or find some device to help her see better. She fell off something and her knee drove into the hard ground. _Ouch, _she thought. She turned around blindly and flailed her arms, feeling for whatever she fell off of.

_That's strange. They don't usually have different leveled surfaces in the Fenton thermos, _she thought. She then realized it was a bed. _Wait…_

_Maybe they upgraded it to make your stay more comfortable before they shove you into the Ghost Zone again, _a tiny voice in the back of her head piped up.

_Pssh, my ass. They aren't _that_ thoughtful, anyways! _She scoffed out loud. She felt around some more, and pushed up onto her feet. The ground felt cold under them. She realized her boots were off. She felt her waist, and it was covered. She fiddled with the cloth and realized it was a t-shirt.

_Okay, this is starting to weird me out,_ she thought, more alert now. She tried taking a few steps, and collapsed, still weak from whatever had happened to her that night. Just at that moment, a door creaked open, and light streamed into the room.

"Ember?" Danny looked at the bed, then realized the sheets were falling off and looked at the ground where Ember lay, passed out again. He walked over and picked her up, laying her on the bed and draping the sheets over her bare legs. He walked over to the nightstand and dipped his fingers in the cold water. He let the tips of his fingers gently touch her sweating forehead and watched as the droplets of clear cool water dripped down her temples.

He noticed just now the little scar she had next to the left corner of her mouth. He touched it. It was raised slightly from the skin around it and it was nearly white against her already pale skin. Then he noticed another scar next to her left eye that was about two inches long, the same length as the first one. This one was etched into her face. Danny's eyebrows furrowed.

_I've never noticed those before, _he thought. He felt the scar next to her eye, leaning in as he studied it. Just then her green eyes opened and he yelped, jumping back. She screamed. Then, realizing it was Danny, she growled, "What the hell are you doing?"

"Well, I, uh-I mean… er…" Danny stammered, trying to figure out how to say something that wouldn't sound totally creepy. "Uh… Where'd you get those scars?" Ember sighed.

"It's none of your business," she snapped.

"Okay, fine." Danny looked aside. He'd seen the look on her face. The look that says, "But there's something more. I don't want to talk about it. Unless you really care." He knew the feeling. "There's soup in the kitchen if you want some," he said without looking at her. He started walking away.

"Danny…" Ember said. He turned around.

"Yeah?"

"Could you… could you turn on the light please?" she asked.

"Sure thing, Ember," he smiled as he flipped on the ceiling light, and walked out.

--

She sat on the bed for a while, wondering if she should've asked him about what happened. And how she got where she was. Why was she in his bedroom? Why had he helped her? Did he know she was going to collapse that night? Was it some conspiracy against her?

_Don't be stupid, _that annoying voice said. _He obviously cares about you._

It was right. She saw the look on his face when he asked her about her scars. He'd been concerned. _Actually _concerned. Nobody had been concerned about her for a long time. Even _Vlad_ (the bastard) hadn't been concerned about her crossing, about whether she go back to the Source that every soul comes from, to live another life, or if she was going to be condemned to the Ghost Realm, and sit on the brink of the living and the dead, not quite living, and not quite dead. That's what physical ghosts were. They were shells of their former self, being able to feel like humans, sweat, cry real tears, shake, collapse, pass out, bruise. They weren't _all_ physical. They weren't rotting corpses. They _could _go through solid objects like spiritual ghosts. And when they weren't conscious, they were physical. Humans would be able to touch them.

Of course, they could switch from physical to wisps of light and cloud whenever they felt like it. But they still felt. They felt strange when they passed through walls, and sad, and happy, and angry. When they weren't physical, their aura (or energy, or whatever you want to call it) changed according to their emotions.

But Vlad didn't care. He could always find some other victim. If she hadn't escaped him, she'd have been sucked into his little scheme of ruining Danny's family. She'd have played a part. And she wanted nothing to do with that sicko. She had only the grudge of Danny putting her back into Vlad's reach.

But he was being _nice_ to her. She had no grudge against that.

Ember got out of bed and walked to the bathroom. She looked in the mirror and realized she was wearing Danny's white shirt. She blushed what little she could, and tugged at the hem of the shirt.

_Wonder where my clothes are, _she thought. She turned on the faucet and splashed water on her face, washing away the makeup on her face, lipstick, smudged eyeliner, and markings.

She walked down to the kitchen, thinking Danny was in the basement, and his family out (though the chances were most likely very slim, but she hadn't thought of that yet.

Ember walked to the microwave and looked in there for the soup, but when she didn't find it, she huffed, and checked the fridge. She found a pot with fogged plastic wrap over it, and cried out in triumph. Ember took the pot out of the fridge with a grin, and turned, to put it on the counter, when she saw Danny standing there against a wall with a smirk on his face.

--

_Clink._

_Clink._

That's all the sound that was heard as Vlad searched through his drawers for a key. This key would open a chest, and from within this newly retrieved chest, Vlad would find a scepter. A scepter he found in a strange shop in Los Angeles after he committed murder.

He did not think over it often, and when he did, it wasn't for long. The thought of being a murderer did not condemn his soul to endless guilt. He thought nothing of it. Ever.

He found it.

The key.

It was large and old and silver. It opened a hematite chest with small shards of rose quartz embedded into various places on the lid. Inside this chest is red crushed velvet. And resting between the folds of the velvet is a 3 foot long thin silver scepter with a demon's face at the top. The silver twists to form the gaping jaw with sharp teeth protruding at an odd angle from the skin, and a pig's snout rests at the bridge of a human nose. The green eyes are of emerald and they glow when the bearer's foe is near or his intent is set on one entity in particular.

In Vlad's case, Ember was the one the scepter's eyes responded to. The scepter was so strong, and his mind's eye was set on her so much, that if the scepter or Vlad ever stepped within 5 miles of Ember, wanting to find her, she would collapse, she would suffer her death again in her mind, and her mind would react so badly that her nervous system and her body would go totally out of whack.

He walked into the hall of his mansion, and opened the box. He murmured something in an otherworldly language and the eyes of the demon snapped open. It replied in a robotic voice.

_Awaken._

_Yes, my liege._

_Find her. Search the world. Show me where she is._

_Yes, my liege. Anything you demand._

The demon's mouth opened, and a ray of light came from the deep of its throat and landed on the wall, forming a circle. The form of Ember appeared on the wall as she registered in the mind of the demon. The image changed to a sweeping view of Danny's hometown to…

_The Fenton's house?_ Vlad asked.

The demon grinned.

_Precisely._

_Everything is going to plan. _Vlad chuckled. _We must go there. I think we will receive a warm welcome, won't we? _He fingered the edge of his cape, grinning. _At least, from Maddie Fenton. But not so much that bratty child, Danny. Damn. Why won't he ever die? _Vlad asked the scepter.

_Because he is strong and knows that there is still a use for him, for the better of mankind. And the worse of demonic figures, such as yourself. And I. _The ray of light disappeared and the demon grinned evily. _He will be destroyed soon. You must only release me from this horrid state, _it said coldly.

_Not until you help me to complete my task of finding the girl, _Vlad snapped back. _And we will rid the world of pathetic heroes such as Danny Phantom forever._


	3. Chapter 3

_**I have interwebs for a limited time, so that would be why I'm updating as much as possible. My internet is unstable at the moment, so the updates won't be regular. I will continue to write, though, even when I don't have internet. Thank you for the reviews!**_

Blank, Chapter 3

_Crash!_

The pot fell to the floor, and Ember's mouth was frozen into an "O" and her eyes were the size of Rolex watches. Her hands were up to her face. Danny laughed, and pushed himself off the wall. Ember's mid-back length hair flared up and she grew very mad.

"Don't scare me like that, dipstick! I thought you were-" she looked at the floor, at the pot tipped over and the soup and noodles spilled all over the floor tile. She didn't finish her sentence, and thought it better to not, since he didn't need to know about Vlad at all.

Danny came over, though Ember was still visibly mad at him. He picked up the pot and placed it in the sink. Ember's eyes slowly shrunk down to their normal size and she watched as Danny cleaned up the mess. She sighed and sat on the counter.

"So, did you think there was going to be some dumb villain ghost, like _Vlad_, in my house without me dealing with him?" Danny asked, standing up and washing out the cloth.

"Well…" Ember said. "I suppose that wouldn't make sense. But… why are you helping me anyway?"

Danny stopped what he was doing and leaned against the counter. He studied the wall, trying to think of some reason as to why he _was_ helping her, and didn't just lock her up in the ghost zone.

It was silent for some time. Ember was starting to feel uncomfortable. Maybe she shouldn't have asked that in such an unappreciative tone. Danny cleared his throat.

"Well…" he started, and she sat up straight, staring at him. "I-I don't know."

"You don't… know?" she asked, incredulous. "But there must be some reason as to why you helped me… I expected to be in the Ghost Zone again."

"Well, I don't exactly have a reason," he replied, staring at the counter. Then he sighed, and said, "At least not one that wouldn't sound completely strange."

Ember sat there. She wasn't going to bother pushing him for information. After all, he might decide to send her back. And then it wouldn't matter. She sighed. Danny smiled weakly.

"Would you like something to eat?" he asked. She nodded. Danny opened a cupboard and took out a bag of bread. He put together a salami sandwich for her. "My mom made the soup, and I'd attempt to remake it, but it'd end up making you choke." He smiled sheepishly, and handed Ember the sandwich.

"Thanks," she said. She took a bite of the sandwich. Danny handed her a glass of iced tea. He sat on the counter next to her.

"So, do you know what happened last night?" he asked her.

She assumed he was talking about the incident in the alley. She swallowed, and tried to look as casual as possible and untroubled.

"Nope," she said. At least she knew what day it was now. "I wish I did. It's never happened to me before." Danny frowned. "Do you?"

"Not a clue," he replied. It seemed sincere enough to her.

There was a knock at the front door. Ember's heart jumped to her throat.

"Danny?" Sam's voice carried through the door to the kitchen. Ember relaxed. It was just Little Miss Snob. God, she hated that girl.

"Oh, God," he moaned. "It's Sam. Ember you're going to need to hide." He started grabbing her empty plate and her half full glass. She yanked them back.

"Not a chance, ghost boy," she said. "I think Sam needs to see what you're hiding." She smirked and stood up, about to walk to the door.

"Ember!" Danny whispered. "Stop!"

"Why?" she asked.

"Because! Because…" he sighed. "I think Sam might jump to conclusions." He gestured to her legs. She looked down and blushed. She didn't have any pants on, and had forgotten that.

"Right." That would be awkward. Especially since she didn't even like Danny and his friends. She looked around. "Then where are my clothes?"

"In the washer-"

_Knock, knock._

"Danny, I know you're in there!" Sam called through the door. "I want to talk to you."

"Your pants are in the washer. They were dirty. Now go!" he pushed her up the stairs. "And don't come down!"

"Fine, fine," Ember snapped, running up the stairs to his room. Danny shook his head and walked to the door. Sam knocked again. He sighed, and opened the door. Sam's eyes were full of tears.

"Danny, I-" she said quietly, looking at the ground. "Danny, I'm sorry about last night. I guess I was just…" She looked at him. "I don't really have an excuse. Danny, I really don't want you to be mad at me." A tear slid down her face. She let out one sob. Danny stepped forward and hugged her. She hugged back.

"It's okay, Sam," he said softly. She brought her head back and studied his face. He smiled at her. Their heads came closer together and their lips touched.

Ember walked down the stairs just as they kissed. She grew angry for some reason. Her hair flared up. Sam's eyes opened ever so slightly as they continued to kiss. She gasped and stepped away from Danny.

"Danny..?"

"Hmm?" he asked, trying to bring her closer again.

"Danny, what is she doing here?" Sam asked, pushing away from Danny.

"Hello, goth girl," Ember snarled. She didn't know why she was so angry, and she really had no reason to be. It wasn't like she had a _problem_ with Sam and Danny kissing.

"Ember," Sam acknowledged.

Danny tensed and turned around slowly. Ember looked at his face. He was angry.

"Aww, did I interrupt your little make out session?" she said in the voice people use to talk to babies and cute puppies.

"I thought I told you to stay in the room, Ember," Danny growled.

"Well, I was thirsty, ghosty," she snapped.

"Dammit, Ember! The only reason I kept you out of the ghost zone was because I thought you would behave yourself!" Danny yelled.

"Well, boohoo. Welcome to reality," she said.

"Wait, wait, wait," Sam said. "You _let_ her stay here?"

"No, Sam, she's been here under my nose for almost 20 hours!" Danny snapped. "Of course I let her stay here!"

"But you should've put her back!" Sam said. "She's evil!"

"Yeah, I think so," Danny said, turning back to Ember. "I'm going ghost!"

_Oh, good job there, Ember. Trust your enemy! _that annoying voice yelled. _He took your defense! Your guitar is gone!_

The next thing Ember knew, everything went black. _Oh, great._

_**Oh noes! Love triangles! Cliché alert! Cliché alert!**_

_**Please read and review! **_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Interwebz are gone for now, so I won't update as often, until we get it again (it's taken from phone SIMs with interwebz).**_

_**Keep in mind that I have not seen this show in a while. 3+ years, to be exact. I only remember it rocking. :D**_

_**WARNING: There is use of the f-word and there's blood so those who are sensitive to that, you have been WARNED.**_

_**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DANNY PHANTOM OR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS IN THIS CHAPTER.**_

Blank, chapter 4

As Vlad was preparing to find Ember, the scepter that lay on his desk started glowing. The demon's eyes opened and the glow focused there.

_She's in the Ghost Realm, _it said. _Danny Phantom put her there._

_Oh, that's definitely convenient, _Vlad replied happily. He opened a closet door and took out a long black suitcase that was just the right length for his scepter, and carefully placed it inside. He walked to his desk, grabbed the trench coat off the back of his chair and picked his gloves up on the way out the door. He promptly changed back into his human self, and, suitcase in hand, walked to the car.

--

_Dammit! _Ember thought, looking around. _What did I do wrong? I was simply teasing him!_

_But he thought you wouldn't make fun of him and Sam, _that _fucking_ annoying voice said. _He's human, so he's sensitive._

_Pssht, _she thought back. _Sensitive, my ass._ Then she wondered if someone would think she was crazy if they knew she was having an argument with herself. Most likely. She looked around and only saw a few ghosts lingering, staring at her. They weren't all there, in the Ghost Zone, kind of stuck between this Realm and the afterlife. She could barely make out their faces. She shuddered. Those ghosts always creeped her out with their emotionless faces and tuneless noises. Sometimes they moaned, and sometimes they made odd clicking noises. They couldn't speak. She turned away from them.

She felt a pain in her arm. Looking down, she saw a gash from her elbow to her shoulder and it was bleeding. Profusely. She didn't think ghosts bled. Ever. They were dead after all.

Then she realized that Vlad could easily get to her here. Since he was part of Danny's family, he had a small right to visit when he wanted to, unless a restraining order said otherwise. But she didn't think that Mrs. Fenton would actually do something like that.

She clutched her arm, thinking about how she could possibly get this healed. She was getting slightly dizzy.

_Well, talk about convenience, _she thought. _Why the hell is this happening?_ _It'd better not be some stupid magical… thing that I can't fix easily._

Danny sat on the edge of his bed feeling slightly guilty. He didn't know why, but he felt like going to the Ghost Zone and bringing Ember back, to apologize. But she deserved to be stuck there, right? She was bad, wasn't she? Yes, she was very evil. She had wanted to take over the world, for chrissake!

He looked at the guitar that sat in the corner of his room. That had been her only way to defend herself and attack him, and she hadn't brought it with her when she went down to the kitchen, and again when she made fun of him and Sam. So she must've trusted that he wouldn't attack her. _He_, her arch nemesis, _not attack her. _He laughed once without humor.

What a stupid thing to think.

And she mercilessly teased him. And he had overreacted, sending her flying across the room, and she had collided with the kitchen drawers. He had knocked her out and taken that opportunity to send her back to the Ghost Zone. It was only after he realized he had blood on his spandex sleeves and gloves that he felt truly guilty.

But why should he? She was evil! He had to keep reminding himself, because in the short conversation they'd had in the kitchen, she didn't _seem_ evil. She'd been… civil. At least until Sam knocked on the door. He looked at ground.

_Maybe I ought to return her guitar to her,_ he thought. But then she'd probably just attack him. She _did_ have a fiery temper. _Ehh, she'll find a way out eventually,_ he thought, and for some reason this was reassuring to him.

_Why was she bleeding? _he thought. _I don't remember dead people being able to bleed._ He decided to make a mental note to look into that.

He yawned and looked at the clock.

11:00.

He lay back onto the pillow and his eyes drifted close.

--

It was early morning and Vlad got out of his vehicle and walked the steps to the Fenton's home. He tapped the door with his knuckles, and it opened to a very tired Danny with mussed hair and a wrinkled shirt. Upon seeing Vlad, however, he immediately woke up.

"Vlad, what the hell are you doing here?" he growled.

"Watch your language, young man," Vlad said, shaking a finger at him. "May I come in?"

Before Danny could say no, or even slam the door in his face, Vlad brushed past him, and set his long thin case in the entryway.

"Is Maddy around?" he asked, taking off his leather gloves and long coat. "It's rather chilly outside. Tea would be nice." Danny rolled his eyes.

_Hadn't even asked him if he wanted a drink, _he thought bitterly. _Oh, if my family wasn't home right now, I'd _so_ blast him._

"Yeah, she's here," he replied. "And we don't have tea in this house. Jazz had the last of it yesterday morning and we didn't make it to the store."

"Oh, then water will suffice," Vlad replied, looking for the door to the basement. Danny thrust a glass of water at him and glared as he took the glass, swatting Danny's hand away. "Thank you."

"Eh."

"Now, seeing as I'm here strictly on business, and your family is in the house, I'll cut to the chase," Vlad said, sitting at the table. He crossed his legs, and stroked his beard. "I'd rather like to that portal in your basement, Danny. It is rather intriguing."

Danny rolled his eyes for the second time, and snapped quietly, "Your cutesy little innocent act isn't going to work on me, Vlad. Whatever you're up to, I'm not contributing in the tiniest way. Even letting you into and out of the Ghost Zone freely is _not_ _happening_."

"Oh, come, come," Vlad said. "I just need a few… necessities from that Realm is all. I promise you won't regret letting me in and out." Danny snorted. Vlad frowned in response. "Really, Danny, all I need is a certain person for… informational reasons. I'll send them right back." Vlad seemed sincere, but Danny still wasn't going to fall for it.

"Not a chance."

"Dammit, child!" Vlad reached across the table and slapped Danny across the face. "Let me into the Ghost Realm!"

"I don't think so," Danny snapped, rubbing his cheek.

Vlad suddenly changed into his ghost self, when he was sure nobody was looking, and blasted Danny across the room. Grabbing his scepter, he flew to the basement and quickly turned it on.

"Vlad, you asshole," Danny shouted, blasting Vlad with a streak of green light. It missed him, burning the tiniest black hairs on the highest point of his head. "You're not going to make another plan to kill me!" He shot another blast at Vlad, hitting him squarely in the chest this time, and Vlad flew back into the wall.

"Danny?" Jazz's muffled voice called. "Danny, what's going on?"

Danny looked towards the door, and realized that Jazz couldn't find out about his ghost self. He changed back, forgetting Vlad.

Vlad took the chance to blast Danny to the floor and he flew through the portal. Danny quickly ran to the switch, and closed it before Jazz rushed through the basement door. She saw the blood coming from Danny's mouth, and she grew worried.

"Danny, are you alright?" she asked, running to him.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, wiping the blood away from his mouth. He realized that Vlad got into the Ghost Zone and he cursed under his breath.

--

As soon as Vlad entered the Realm, he saw Ember clutching her arm and wincing in pain. He flew up quietly behind her, but the warning clicks and moans from the ghosts around him did not help to make him as sneaky as he'd like. Luckily, Ember ignored them, and he was able to grab her wrist with one hand and twist it behind her back.

"Hello, love," he sneered, placing his chin on her shoulder. "Did you miss me?"

"Go to Hell, Vlad," Ember replied, her voice shaking.

"Not likely, bitch," he snapped, knocking her out.

--

_**Oh noes!**_

_**Please review! They make my week! Sorry for not updating recently! I luffs my readers! 3**_

_**-K**_


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